Door operator



April Z211 1942- R; .M DlLwoR-TH 2,280,387

nooR orERAToR Filedmig. 2, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 7 e Hunan. :i

Gttornegs AprlZl, 1942. R. M. DlLwoRTH I i, 2,280,387

DOOR OPERATOR Filed Aug. 2,` 1940` `3 sheets-sheet 2 L 2 f y ia i 6 if :z

nnentor @ff i April 21, 1942.

R. M. DlLwoR'rH `DooR OPERATOR Fied Aug. 2, 1940 5 Sheets-Shea?I 3 Patented Apr. 21, 1942 `Richard M. Dilworth, Hinsdale,

General Motors Corporation, corporation of Delaware Ill., assigner to Detroit, Mich., a

Application August 2, 1940, Serial No. 349,912

4 Claims.

This invention relates to ventilators for vehicles, and has to do particularly with the type of ventilator whereinan opening in one 'of the `vehicle walls may be closed by a door operable from inside the vehicle. In the usual form of such construction, a handle or lever is attached to the door to permit operation of it, and a latch of some kind is provided to hold the door ineither closed or open position. When it is desired to change the position of the door, it is necessary to release the latch and then grasp the handle or lever attached `to the door to move the door to the desired position. `I Itis an object of my invention to provide such a ventilator construction in which the means which serves to` holdv the door in either closed or open position iscombined with an operating lever connected to the door, so that movement of the lever in a direction which will change the position of the door `will release the holding means, permittingthe door to be moved to the desired position, whereupon when the operator lets go of the lever, the holding means again becomes effective to lock the door inthat position. This is advantageous in installations where the ventilator door is located in a position where it is not readily accessible, such asin the roof of a locomotive body,`where it would be diflicult for the operator to release the ordinary form of latch mechanism carried by the door, since it would be I out of his reach. By combining the latch structure with the door operating lever which has a projection extending down into the body compartment where it will bewithin reach,l a single movement of the' lever serves both to release the latch and to move the door. 1

.Other objectsand `advantages will be apparent upon reference to the following description and accompanying drawings, in which: I

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of alocomotive showing `my improved ventilator structure associated therewith.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary plan view taken on the `line 2-2 of Fig. 1, showing the parts on a larger scale and with portions broken away.

Fig. 3 is a "sectional view taken onthe line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a sectional View taken on the line 4 -4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view similar to the left hand side of Fig. 3, but showing the parts in a different position. i

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary view showing a portion of the ventilator operating mechanism in a different position.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary plan view taken on the line 1-1 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on the line 8--8 of Fig. 7.

Fig.` 9` is a sectional View taken on the line 9-9 of Fig. 8.

The reference numeral I0 designates the body of a locomotive of the Diesel-electric type, and

I2 is the roof thereof, frame membersM and which is supported by IE, shown in Figs. 2 and 3. A Ventilating opening I8 is formed in the forward portion of the roof, and is covered by a hood 2|) which projects upwardly above the roof and is secured thereto by screws 22 which extend through the roof and are threaded into the frame members I4 `and I6. The hood is strengthened by anged channel members 24 which are welded to the inner surface thereof.

` Openings 26 and 28 are formed in the front and rear walls respectively of the hood, and located adjacent these openings are doors 30 land 32` which may be set to a position to close the openings. These doors are pivotally connected to the outer surface of the hood below the openings by hinges 34, and are adapted to be operated by the following mechanism.

Secured to and extending between the frame members I4 and I5 are L-shaped supporting members 36 and 38 which are located at opposite `edges of the opening I8 in the roof. Brackets 40 and`42 are secured to the members 36 and 38 respectively, and a shaft 44 extends between these brackets and is rotatably supported therein. Secured to the shaft adjacent the bracket by a pin 46 is an arm 48 which is pivotally connected by pin with a yoke 52, into which is threaded one end of a rod 54, there being a lock nut 56 provided to hold the rod in adjusted I position relative to the yoke. The other end of the rod is attened to form an eye 58 which fits between a bracket 6I) and abracket 62 welded to the inner surface of the door 30, the eye being pivotally connected to the brackets by a pin 64.

At the other end of the shaft 44, an arm 66 is secured to the shaft by a pin 68, and this arm has an upwardly extending projection 'I0 to which a yoke 52, similar to that used at the other end, is

pivotally secured, this yoke being connected to the door by the same structure as used atthe opposite end of the doors.

Supported by the arm 66 and connected thereto by bolts 'I2 and I4 is a lever 'I6 to the opposite end of which is attached a rod 18 downwardly into the body compartment of the locomotive to a point where its lower end will be which extends accessible to the operators thereof. Slots 80 and 82 are formed in the lever and bolts 12 and 14 respectively extend through these slots.

The bracket 42 has formed on it or welded to it a sector 84 which has notches 86 and 88 formed in its outer edge, which is curved in the form of a portion of a circle, the center of which is the center of. the shaft 44. A tension spring 90 one end of which is connected to a pin 92 carried by the arm 66 and the other end of which is connected to a pin 94 secured to the lever 'I6 serves to pull the latter against the curved edge -oi the sector, and as shown in Fig. 5, when the door 30 is in the position wherein it will close the opening 26, a tooth 98 formedon the edge of the lever is adapted to fit into the notch 86, thereby serving to hold the parts in the position shown, the spring exerting a continuous pull which keeps the tooth in the notch.

When it is desired to move the door to open position, the operator pushes the rod 18 upwardly and this causes the parts to Atake the position shown in Fig. 6, wherein it will be seen that since the bolt 14 is at the end of the slot 82 toward which the pressure is being applied, it will serve as a fulcrum point about which the lever will pivot, the slot 80 permitting such movement which vwill cause the tooth 9E to be lifted out of the notch 85. Continued'upward movement of the lever will cause the arm 66 to move upwardly, the tooth 9B sliding over the curved edge of the sector 84, against which it is held by the tension of the spring 90. Since the arm 66 is secured to the shaft 44, when it is swung upwardly it rotates the shaft thereby causing the arm 48 to be swung upwardly, and since both the arms 48 and 66 are connected to the door by the yokes 52 and rods 54, the door is swung outwardly to open position. When it reaches such position, the lever has been moved upwardly to a point where the tooth 96 will be in line with the notch 88y and when the operator lets go of the rod 18, the spring 90 will pull the lever toward the sector thereby causing the tooth 96 to enter the notch 88 so that it will serve to hold the parts in that position.

When the' door is to be closed, the operator merely pulls the rod 18 downwardly, whereupon the bolt 12 serves as the fulcrum point about which the lever is rocked to lift the tooth 9S out of the notch 8B, after which the arms 48 and 66 may be pulled downwardly to move the door to closed position, in which position it will be held by the engagement of the tooth 96 in the notch 86 when the operator lets go of the rod '|8. Stops 98 and |00 are secured to the sector 84 and the arm 66 engages these stops to limit its upward and downward swinging movement.

Itwill be seen from the above that while the door is positively locked in open or closed positions, it does not require any separate movement of the operating mechanism to unlock it when it is desired to move it to the opposite position, the mere act of pushing the lever upwardly when the door is to be opened or pulling it downwardly when it is to be closed serving to release the mechanism which locks it in either position. When the ventilator is located in an inaccessible position such as in the roof of a locomotive body as shown, it obviously is advantageous to be able to release the latching means by merely moving the lever which changes the position of the door, rather than to have to rst releasel a separate latch, which might be diiiicult to reach, and then actuate the lever which moves the door.

A similar mechanism is provided to operate the door 32, and various Ventilating arrangements may be obtained by opening or closing the doors 30 and 32. As shown in Fig. 3, both doors may be moved to open position so that air entering through the opening 26 will tend to flow cutwardly through the opening 28, causing some of the air from within the locomotive body to be drawn out with it. Or if desired, only one of the doors may be opened, depending upon what the outside temperature conditions and wind direction and velocity are.

As shown in Fig. l, another Ventilating opening |02 is formed in the roof near the rear portion of the locomotive. A hood |04 which is somewhat similar to the hood 20, except that it only has one opening |06 formed in it, that being in its forward face, is secured to the roof over the opening |02 by screws |08. This structure is shown in detail in Figs. 7 to 9, from which it will be seen that since the only opening in the hood is at the front thereof, the hood slopes downwardly to the level of the roof at its rear end. The single door ||0 employed in this construction is operated by the same mechanism as are the doors 30 and 32, the only difference in the structures shown being that in that illustrated in Figs. 1 to 9, the brackets 40 and 42 are supported on members ||2 and ||4 which are secured to inner surfaces of the sides of the hood |04, depending downwardly therefrom.

It will be understood that the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be -considered in all respects as being merely illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being defined by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

I claim:

1. A mechanism for operating a door pivotally mounted at one edge of an opening, comprising a notched sector stationarily supported adjacent the opening, an armfmounted for movement relative to said sector, linkage connecting said arm to said door, a lever mounted on said arm by a double pin and slot connection which allows the lever to rock in either direction relative to the arm and sector, said lever being provided with a tooth which normally rests in one of the notches in the sector, and a handle for actuating the lever, movement of the handle in either direction serving to rock the lever about one of the pin and slot connections as a pivot point thereby lifting the tooth out of the notch in the sector and allowing the lever and arm to be moved relative to the sector to open or close said door.

2. A mechanism for operating a door pivotally mounted at one edge of an opening, comprising a notched sector stationarily supported adjacent the opening, an arm mounted for swinging movement relative to said sector, linkage connecting said arm to said' door, a lever having a pair of slots formed therein, a pair of pins extending through the arm and through the slots in the lever to connect the lever to the arm in a manner which will allow the lever to be rocked in either direction relative to the arm and sector, said lever carrying a tooth, a spring serving to hold the lever against the edge of the sector se that said tooth will be held in one of the notches in the sector, and a handle for actuating the lever, movement of the handle in eitherdirection serving' to rock the lever about one ofthe pin and slot connections lifting the tooth out of the notch in the sector and allowing the lever and arm to swing relative to the sector to open or close said door.

3. A mechanism for operating a door pivotally mounted at one edge of an opening, comprising a pair of bracketssecured adjacent the opening,`

a notched sector supported on one of said brackets, a shaft having its end portions journalled in said brackets, a pair of arms secured to said shaft to rotate therewith, linkage connecting each of said arms to said door, a lever having a pair of slots formed therein, a pair of pins extending through one of said arms and through said slots `as a pivot point thereby K mounted at one edge of an opening,

` said brackets, a pair of arms secured to said shaft l to rotate therewith, linkage4 connecting each of said arms to said door, one of said arms having an extension formed thereon, a lever located adjacent said extension and connected thereto by a 'double pin and slot connection which allows the lever to be rocked in either direction about in the lever to connect the latter to said arm in a manner which will allow the lever to be rocked in either direction relative tothe sector and to said arm, said'lever being provided with a tooth adapted to normally rest in one of the notches in said sector, and a handle for actuating said lever.

`movement of the said handle in either direction serving to rock the lever about one of the pin and slot connections asa pivot point thereby lifting thetooth out ofthe notch in the sector and allowing the lever to move relative to the sec-` tor, thereby rotating'both of the arms and the shaft to open or close said door.

one or the other of the pin and slot connections las a pivot point, said lever carrying a tooth adapted to t into one of the notches in the sector, a spring serving `to hold said lever against the edge of said sector so that the tooth will normally be held in one of the notches, and a handle for actuating said lever, movementof f `the said handle serving to rock the lever about one of the pin and slot connections thereby lifting the tooth out of the notch in the sector and allowing the lever and y tension to swing relative to the sector, thereby causing the shaft and the other arm to be rol tated to open or close said door.

n lRICHARD M. DILWORTH. 

